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when december rolls around i will invariably be toiling in the land of childrens theater. this year is no exception.

over the past 25 years nary a yule has passed without me performing or directing or writing or producing for the wee little ones (usually all of those duties)

over the years what began as a christmas show has morphed into a "holiday" show. more accurately a "holidays" show. not to put too fine a point on it ,these december shows have become a "whatever the heck holiday that falls somewhere in late fall- early winter that is endorsed by any ethnic or religious group no matter how big or small, will be celebrated with equal fervor"show

so... these 50 minute long musicals, which more often than not are populated by talking animals and elves ....oops.... little people........damn.......fantasy creations (but no wizards!) have to carry a lot of water. allllllllllll the bases have to be covered.

i did a show a year or so back (directed didn't write) that not only dealt with hanukkah and kwanzaa but at least three different takes on christmas (secular, religious, complete with ethnic variations.)

i love to listen to radio classics on sirius-this month they are playing all christmas episodes from various programs ranging from jack benny to this is the fbi. there are of course dozens of variations of the christmas carol and it's a wonderful life but i am most taken by how many of the stories are flat out religious in nature. flat out, no apologies ,baby jesus christmas.

heck, look at how religious "a charlie brown christmas "is. on a side note how great is that vince guaraldi music? christmas time is here? the ice skating song? beautiful but with a perfect balance of melancholy..

so everybody take a deep breath and realize sometimes it's okay to see a show about santa and his elves and reindeer and whats new at the north pole.maybe next week you all can go see a show about baby jesus. or play with a dreidel and light a candle. or read about the 8 nights of kwanza or...............